Ex-county manager alleges 'illegal' termination in tort notice

Just two month after declining to act on Doña Ana County Manager Julia Brown's contract, county commissioners voted to remove her, 4-1, at their meeting Tuesday at the County Government Center.
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County Manager Julia Brown speaks with Chuck McMahon, assistant county manager and Nelson Goodin, Doña Ana County attorney, during Tuesday's Doña Ana County Commissioners meeting, where the subject of Brown's continued employment was the subject of much debate among the chamber full of county residents.(Photo: Josh Bachman/Sun-News)Buy Photo

LAS CRUCES - Former Doña Ana County Manager Julia Brown, who was fired earlier this year following a 4-1 vote by the County Commission, is seeking to settle claims against the county of wrongful termination through mediation, in the hopes of reaching a private resolution to avoid a “public spectacle,” her attorney said in a written notice to the county.

Brown, through her attorney, Ben Furth of the Furth Law Firm, sent a brief tort notice to the County Clerk's Office on Monday, alleging illegal termination by the commission, according to a copy of the letter obtained by the Sun-News.

The letter, addressed to Interim County Manager Chuck McMahon and County Clerk Scott Krahling, was a formal request for mediation and a private resolution.

“While neither mediation or arbitration are required before filing a lawsuit, we believe the parties should try to resolve our client’s New Mexico Whistleblower Protection Act claim before the public spectacle of litigation occurs," the letter states.

It goes on to state: “We respectfully request a mediation with Joleen Youngers, Judge Alan Torgerson, Joel Newton, or Larry White. Please let me know whether you are willing to mediate the dispute and if so, if any of these mediators are acceptable."

The letter was signed by Furth, who did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Tuesday.

The tort notice comes more than five months after Brown’s contract was terminated during a highly contentious County Commission meeting.

Brown's contract was the final item on that meeting's agenda and drew widespread testimony from community members and county employees, all of whom spoke in favor of Brown.

Three of the four commissioners who voted in favor of terminating Brown's contract — Isabella Solia, John Vasquez and Ramon Gonzalez — did not publicly comment on their decisions after the April meeting. Ben Rawson was the fourth commissioner to vote in favor of the motion to terminate the contract.

Commissioner Billy Garrett voted against the motion, saying at the time, "I don't think we should be thinking about termination of the contract. It's premature."

In response to Garrett's comments, Rawson said he was astonished Brown was given a three-year contract extension by the previous commission during its final days in office.

In September 2016, the commission voted 3-1 to extend Brown's contract by three years. The contract renewal came with pay increases over a three-year period, starting at $142,000, and would have increased up to $168,000. The contract also included a six-month severance clause.

After the April meeting, Brown said she believed her dismissal was politically motivated.

"I'm completely surprised by it," she said at the time. "I'm not aware of the reason why, because I've not been formally evaluated."

The commission is currently in the process of searching for a permanent county manager. In August, commissioners approved a contract for former Las Cruces City Manager Robert Garza, now of Las Cruces-based Garza & Associates, to oversee the search.

In the meantime, McMahon is serving as interim county manager under a one-year contract that was approved in May. Last month, he was named one of six finalists for the permanent position.

The other finalist include: Las Cruces fire Chief Eric Enriquez; 3rd Judicial District Judge Fernando Macias, who served as the county manager from 1997-2000; Gerald Mecca, a self-employed financial advisor in Pittsford, New York; and Scott Sensanbaugher, assistant director of the city of El Paso's Capital Improvement Department.